Three affiliated with UI named to science academy

CHAMPAIGN — University of Illinois Chancellor and Vice President Phyllis Wise, along with history Professor Frederick Hoxie and alumnus Thomas Siebel, have been elected into the prestigious American Academy of Arts and Sciences.

Wise, also a member of the National Academy of Sciences' Institute of Medicine and a fellow of the American Association for the Advancement of Science, is a faculty member in the School of Molecular and Cellular Biology, as well as in molecular and integrative physiology, in obstetrics and gynecology, and in animal sciences.

Hoxie is a Swanlund Professor of history at Illinois and has appointments in the College of Law and American Indian Studies program. He has written extensively on U.S. Indian policy, the history of Native American communities and the meaning of indigenous history in modern society.

Siebel, who has donated millions to the university, is chairman and chief executive officer of C3 Energy, a software company that helps reduce organizations' carbon footprint.

New members will be inducted into the academy on Oct. 12 in Cambridge, Mass.

"This is a very significant and well-deserved recognition for Chancellor Wise, professor Hoxie and Tom Siebel," said UI President Bob Easter in a news release, "Their honors reflect the dedication to excellence and positive impact on society that are among the core values of the University of Illinois."

Established in 1780, the academy has more than 250 Nobel laureates and more than 60 Pulitzer Prize winners among its members, including George Washington, Benjamin Franklin, Ralph Waldo Emerson and Albert Einstein.

Members contribute to academy publications and studies in areas of science and technology policy, energy and global security, social policy and American institutions, and the humanities, arts and education.

"We look forward to drawing on the knowledge and expertise of these distinguished men and women to advance solutions to the pressing policy challenges of the day," academy president Leslie Berlowitz said in the release.

Prior to becoming UI chancellor and vice president in October 2011, Wise was interim president at the University of Washington and dean of the College of Biological Sciences at the University of California at Davis. She earned a bachelor's degree from Swarthmore College and a doctorate from the University of Michigan. Her other recognitions include the Excellence in Science Award from the Federation of American Societies for Experimental Biology and of the Women in Endocrinology Mentor Award.

Prior to joining the UI, Hoxie was vice president for research and education at the Newberry Library in Chicago. He also has served as a trustee of the Smithsonian Institution's National Museum of the American Indian and of Amherst College, a member of the executive council of the Organization of American Historians and the president of the American Society of Ethnohistory. Hoxie earned his undergraduate degree from Amherst and his doctorate from Brandeis University. He has taught at Antioch College and Northwestern University. His awards include the Western History Association's lifetime achievement award in American Indian history,

In addition to building his career in the software industry, most notably at Siebel Systems, Siebel created The Siebel Foundation and The Meth Project Foundation to improve education, scholarship, community life and the prevention of teen drug use. At the UI, he established the Siebel Center for Computer Science and has endowed two professorships. Siebel earned a bachelor of arts degree in history, a master of business administration, a master of science in computer science and an honorary doctorate of engineering — all from the UI.

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